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Saturday, October 29, 2016

“The Foster Memorial” by Charlene D. Jones

You want an
architectural delight, somewhere to hear great music made better by
extraordinary acoustics and exquisite beauty of an, oh, say exotic nature. You
find this and more every Friday night in the unsung Foster Memorial.

Mr. Foster, heir to a
huge estate, former Mayor of Toronto, left Canada to explore the globe. When he
reached the Taj Mahal he found what his heart needed: an architecture to bring
back to his native Ontario.

Just north of the
modestly populated and densely artistic town of Uxbridge, south of Leaksdale,
this unique building sprouts suddenly on the East side of the highway.

That’s not all. Every
Friday night from April until October a tiny group of volunteers united in
their love for the Foster offer an hour of excellent music. Often springing
from local talent such as the stunning jazz guitarist Chris Saunders who
features his equally talented son Joel Saunders, the Foster also magnetizes
what is rare in music.

For instance the Shimoda
Family Consort appears. Their classic renditions of Baroque music entertains as
much through the original instruments, harpsichord, medieval oboe, and this seven
foot high reed instrument as through their studied delivery.

Notice the inside of the
Foster building. Yes those are tiles to your right, intricate tiles in rose
patterned details. Let your eye linger shortly on the beveled top of the
pillars, marble pillars that is and recognize the flourish of stone and pattern
throughout the building’s interior.

You may recognize a bit
of the Foster from a recent episode of Murdoch Mysteries. Volunteers have
captured the Grail cups used in that episode and placed them proudly on display
in front of the altar.

Alas, the Friday evening concerts are over for the season, but the next event at the Foster will be a reading of Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol and a seasonal sing-a-long on Sunday, November 20, 2016. Doors open at 1:30, program starts at 2:00.

For more information
including maps, a list of upcoming events and directions go here.

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Charlene
Jones escaped from three days as hostage to two armed criminals
when she was just 16. Within a year she met her meditation teacher, the
contentious Namgyal Rinpoche. Through his teachings on Visualization Ms. Jones
created a life of health, vitality and joy in spite of her early trauma. This
is her testimony to how we all have the power to heal. Her bookMedicine
Buddha / Medicine Mindis
available from Amazon here.

Brian Henry has been a book editor, writer, and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He teaches creative writing at Ryerson University. He also leads weekly creative writing courses in Burlington, Mississauga, Oakville and Georgetown and conducts Saturday workshops throughout Ontario. His proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.